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Tourists wave the national flag during a visit to Quanfu, an island in the west of the Paracels in the South China Sea, last month. Photo: AP

PLA Navy chief visited Paracels, Taiwan's intelligence boss says

Wu Shengli spent a week inspecting construction projects in the South China Sea, head of Taiwanese intelligence says

PLA Navy chief Wu Shengli spent a week inspecting Beijing's construction projects on disputed islands in the South China Seas and oversaw a naval drill last month, Taiwan's intelligence boss has said.

An extended visit by a top-ranking defence chief to the area would be rare and was interpreted in Taiwan as further evidence of Beijing's determination to bolster its hold over the potentially energy-rich waters.

Wu made the visit to the Paracel Islands towards the end of the month, Lee Hsiang-chou, the director-general of the island's National Security Bureau, told the Legislative Yuan on Wednesday, the reported yesterday.

Beijing has seven construction projects in the chain, with five being approved during the administration of President Xi Jinping. Wu inspected each of them, Lee said. "The goal of [the reclamation effort] is to turn islets into ramparts and islands into battlefields," Lee told the Yuan, the reported.

He said Wu observed a joint drill by the navy and air force off Fiery Cross Reef, known as Yongshu in Chinese, and which the Philippines also claims.

China, Taipei, Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei and Malaysia claim sovereignty over all or part of the Spratly Islands. Tensions have risen in recent years as Beijing has pushed ahead with construction projects and sent oil rigs to search for natural gas.

Taiwan has a military presence on Taiping Island, the largest in the chain, but military analysts said Beijing's efforts were unlikely to have an impact on Taipei's deployment.

"Beijing's reclamation projects in the South China Sea have never targeted Taiwan, but are a long-term diplomatic and legal strategy to win legitimacy for the proclamation of sovereignty in the international community," said Lin Chong-pin, a former deputy defence minister of Taiwan.

Wu Shih-wen, a former defence minister who patrolled the waters for two decades from the 1960s, said the military presence on Taiping was advantageous for the PLA. "Taiping is far from mainland China, and Taiwanese naval forces have … prevented the island from being grabbed by Vietnam and other countries since 1945," he said.

Macau-based military expert Antony Wong Dong said the reclamation projects could be used by Beijing to establish an air-defence identification zone in the area.

 

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: PLA Navy chief 'visited Paracels'
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